Hospital bed



Sept. 18, 1934.

A. COMPER HOSPITAL BED Filed Feb. 1, 1953 Patented Sept. 18, 1934 HOSPITAL BED Adrian Camper, Pittsfield, Mass, assignor to Hospital Appliances, Inc., Pittsfield, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Application February 1, 1933, Serial No. 654,721

4 Claims. (01. 5-226) The invention relates to hospital beds having mattress supports including spring *means for allowing yielding of said supports and the mattresses for the comfort of the patients. When treating-certain kinds of fractures, it is necessary that the patient remain in such a position as to necessitate holding of the mattress and its support against any great amount of downward deflection. To accomp ish this, it is customary to make use of fracture boards interposed between the mattress and its support, but such boards are not only heavy and cumbersome but are usually stored in a more or less inaccessible place from which they must be carried by an orderly or other attendant who is not always available for this purpose when needed, with the result that there is often much trouble and confusion in preparing the bed for the patient. My invention however, aims to overcome these diniculties by the provision of novel means quickly and easily movable by the nurse into such position as to hold the mattress support against undesirable downward deflection when required, thereby overcoming the necessity of using fracture boards for this purpose.

A further object of the invention is to provide supporting means for quickly and easily establishing a direct rigid weight-sustaining connection between the mattress support and parts of the bed frame (preferably the usual side rails) to prevent the undesirable downward deflection of the mattress and its support whenever required.

Yet another objectis to provide a bed which itself carries the aforesaid supporting means for the mattresssupport, thereby insuring that the same shall be always accessible for use at a. moments notice.

A still further aim is the provision of the aforesaid supporting means in such form as to be readily attachable to the usual side rails of a bed, with only the necessity of drilling openings through said rails and securing fasteners in said openings.

With the foregoing and minor objects in view, the invention resides in the novel subject matter hereinafter described and claimed, description being accomplished by reference to the accompanying drawing.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a hospital bed constructed in accordance with the invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a portion of one of the side rails of the bed, one of the pivoted supporting arms and the'bracket for said arm.

Fig. 3 is a detail vertical sectional view showing the manner of mounting the arm-carrying bracket on the side rail.

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic top plan showinga modification.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view similar to Fig. 3 showing a modified construction.

In the drawing above briefly described, 10 and 11 denote the head and foot of a hospital bed, rigidly connected by the usual side rails 12, and 13 denotes a mattress support stretched between the usual end bars 14. The mattress support 13 shown in Fig. 1 is of the general type disclosed in my U. S. PatentNo. 1,884,577 of October 25, 1932, and includes a transverse elongated frame 15 which slidably carries two auxiliary supports 16 for central mattress sections which are separable so that a bed pan may be elevated between them; As the present invention is not concerned with any means for actuating the sections 16 or with any means for elevating the bed pan however, said sections 16 and their carrying frame 15 have alone been shown. Provision is made for establishing a direct rigid weight-sustaining connection between the frame 15 and the side rails 12,-so that the entire mattress support 13 may be held against undesirable downward deflection whenever required, thereby overcoming the necessity of using the conventional fracture boards for this purpose. a

In the construction disclosed, horizontally swingable inherently rigid arms 17 are pivotally mounted upon the side rails 12 and normally occupy outwardly swung positions in which they will not interfere with normal depression of the mattress support 13. However, these armsmay be quickly and easily swung inwardly to positions at which they underlie the ends of the frame 15, thereby rigidly transmitting all downward stresses directly to the side rails 12 from the mattress support 13. In the construction illus trated, the side bars 18 of the frame 15 are provided near their ends with downward projections 19 which are receivable in recesses 20 in the free ends of the supporting arms 17, the interfitting projections and recesses serving to hold. the arms in operative position. When swinging the arms to this position, the frame 15 is of course lifted slightly to allow the projections 19 to be received in the recesses 20, and said frame must be similarly lifted when the arms are to be returned to idle positions.

In the preferred construction, each arm 17 is pivoted upon a vertical rivet or the like 21, be-

tween the upper and lower flanges 22 and 23 of a channel-shaped bracket 24, the ends of the rivet 21 being usually counter-sunk in openings in said flanges. Before pivoting the arm 17 between the flanges 22 and 23, an attaching fastener 25 is passed outwardly through an opening 26 in the central portion of the bracket 24, so that said fastener is available for securing the bracket in the angle of the side rail 12. said rail being of angle metal construction in most instances. Whenever cylindrical side rails or rails of other shape are encountered, it will of course be necessary to accordingly change the shape of the bracket 24;. When the side rails are of angular cross section however, the bracket 24 fits snugly within the angle and one fastener 25 for each bracket will therefore sufiice, it being only necessary to drill an opening in the vertical flange of the side rail, wherever a fastener must pass through said flange. The outer end of the fastener may either be upset as herein shown at 27, or may be provided with a nut.

So far, in disclosing the invention, it has been explained only in connection with a mattress support of the general type shown in Patent 1,884,577, but the invention is not restricted to use with such a mattress support, as diagram matically illustrated in Fig. 4. In this view, 13 denotes the conventional mattress supporting spring and 12 has reference to the side rails of the bed. Suitably secured against the lower side of the spring 13 are two transverse bars 18*. Supports 1'7 are provided for establishing rigid weight-sustaining connections between the ends of the bars 18 and the side rails 12 said supports 17 being preferably of the same form and mounted in the same way as the supports 17 above described.

It will be readily seen that by using the construction shown in Fig. 4, or a similar construction, the conventional hospital bed now in every day use, may be quickly and easily converted so that undesirable downward deflection of the mattress and its support may be prevented whenever desired, without the necessity of using conventional fracture boards.

, The arms 17 may of course be applied to any type of bed frame by simply altering the shape of the cast or stamped bracket 24. For exam ple, in Fig. 5, the bracket 24 is shaped to enfoot connected by side rails, and a yieldable mattress support having a transverse inherently rigid member between its ends; normally idle rigid supporting arms for the ends of said inherently rigid transverse member, and means permanently pivoting said inherently rigid arms upon said rails, allowing swinging of said inherently rigid arms into engagement with the ends of said inherently rigid transverse member to establish direct rigid weight-sustaining connections between said inherently rigid transverse member and said side rails, said member having downwardly projecting lugs, said arms being provided with upwardly open recesses to receive said lugs for the purpose of holding the arms in operative position.

2. A hospital bedcomprising a head and a foot connected by side rails, a yieldable mattress support and supporting means for the ends thereof, brackets shaped to fit the transverse shape of said side rails and rigidly secured to the latter between the ends thereof, said brackets each having upper and lower horizontal arms, and swingable inherently rigid arms pivoted on vertical axes between said bracket arms, said swingable arms being swingable to positions in which they establish direct rigid weightsustaining connections between the mattress support and the side rails.

3. A hospital bed comprising a head and a foot connected by angle metal side rails, a yieldable mattress support and supporting means for the ends thereof, brackets secured in the angles of said side rails between the ends of the latter, said brackets having upper and lower horizontal arms, and swingable inherently rigid arms pivoted on vertical axes between said bracket arms, said swingable arms being swingable to positions in which they establish direct rigid weight-sustaining connections between said mattress support and said side rails, whereby said swingable arms may prevent undesirable downward deflection of said mattress support when required, without the necessity of using conventional fracture boards.

4. A hospital bed comprising a head and a foot connected by side rails, a yieldable mattress support mounted over said rails and having a transverse inherently rigid member between its ends, and inherently rigid arms pivotally mounted on vertical axes upon said rails respectively, said arms normally lying longitudinally of said rails and being swingable horizontally inward therefrom into supporting engagement with said transverse member.

ADRIAN COMPER.

1 Bill 

